


Let Me Protect You

by SkyWolfSong



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-08
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:53:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27445183
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkyWolfSong/pseuds/SkyWolfSong
Summary: Wilbur raised a hand to his face and rubbed an eye. His breath rasped in his throat before he said; "I'm supposed to be the older brother. I'm supposed to be in charge. I -" He swallowed. A tear trickled down his cheek. "Why can't you let me protect you?"
Kudos: 87





	Let Me Protect You

**Author's Note:**

> I might finish some more parts for this.
> 
> Cross-posted on Wattpad

"Who did this to you?"

The anger in Techno's tone was evident. As he raised Wilbur's chin, their eyes met, and Wilbur saw multicoloured blazes in their depths.

He swallowed and dropped his gaze again, focusing on the collar of Techno's white shirt.

"No one."

He felt Techno's thumb brush against the side of his mouth - probably wiping away the blood left smeared there - and fought back a shudder.

"It's fine," he insisted, but he could feel his voice waver. Techno wouldn't notice that...but his brother wasn't completely oblivious.

"You're hurt," Techno began. Laughter bubbled to Wilbur's lips and he met his brother's eyes again, this time of his own accord.

"That's obvious." He couldn't help himself.

Techno's eyes narrowed, gold as sharp as metal, red as burning as flames. He didn't speak and Wilbur guessed he was contemplating his options. Well, he wasn't going to get the chance. 

Wilbur jerked his head away from Techno's hand and turned around.

"It's nothing."

Techno's sigh made him flinch. "Wilbur."

If Wilbur had one word to describe Techno's tone then, he'd say 'sad'. Not because it was - the anger and coldness were clearly evident - but for Techno it was quiet, sullen, leaning towards gentleness even. An adjective foreign to the man standing behind him.

Wilbur just shook his head. "It doesn't matter, okay? I can... I can handle myself." He made to leave the room but Techno moved in front of him. Wilbur ducked his head, lest their eyes meet again.

"You come home way past curfew, clearly injured and bleedin' - why won't you tell me what happened?"

"So do you," Wilbur murmured. He hesitated, swallowed, then went on, raising his voice as he did. "So do you! You always do this - why do you have a problem when I do it? Why do you have a problem, this one time, when I don't want to tell you where I've been, when you do this all the time?"

Techno was quiet for a moment. "That's different."

"How?" Wilbur finally made eye contact again. "How? How is it okay when you do the exact same thing, but when I do it, you're suddenly concerned? I just - you - you don't even listen when we yell at you, Techno." Wilbur felt his words reach a dead end and stopped, panting.

Techno looked away.

"You're the one yellin'."

Wilbur closed his eyes.

"And you're still not listening."

A beat. Two beats. Three beats.

Wilbur raised a hand to his face and rubbed an eye. His breath rasped in his throat before he said; "I'm supposed to be the older brother. I'm supposed to be in charge. I -" He swallowed. A tear trickled down his cheek. "Why can't you let me protect you?"

There was more silence.

The hand on Wilbur's face dropped to his side and he blinked his eyes open.

"I'm going to bed," he muttered. He went to leave the room again but found himself stopping at Techno's side. He hesitated before slowly placing a hand on his brother's shoulder, hardly aware of his actions. "Let me protect you," he found himself whispering.

Techno turned his head around and lifted his eyes. For a moment, they were blank. The burning depths of earlier weren't there.

"You? Really?" His voice carried no amusement. But then his eyes locked onto Wilbur's - metal and fire against sunlight - and snapped. "What did you just say? Didn't you just say you could protect yourself? So can I, Wilbur - that's all I've been doing!"

He jerked his shoulder away from Wilbur's hand.

"I don't care that you're older," he spat, and the force of the anger took Wilbur by surprise. "I don't care that you're in charge, I don't care that you're supposed to protect me - because I can look after myself! I don't need your constant supervision or comments - I've handled myself out there just fine without you!"

He turned and stalked from the room, leaving Wilbur, as injured and tired and confused as he was, by himself.

"What just happened?" he whispered to himself.

He felt his eyelids droop. There was a wall in front of him and he stumbled towards it, leaning against it as he slid to the floor.

"Techno?" he murmured aloud, but there was no response. He wasn't sure that he said anything, but he could feel hot liquid dripping from his lips as he mumbled the word. It took a few moments for him to realise that it was blood.

His eyes drifted shut. He wanted to wipe the blood from his lips but he was tired. Exhausted from his injuries and distracted from the pain from the argument he had just had, he couldn't quite wrap his mind around the events of the night.

His last thought before he drifted to sleep was Techno's words.


End file.
